They don't forget when you lie!

A recent comment about the Scott Beauchamp case led me to an article in the American Thinker. The bottom line here is: if you think you can get away with lying, you're probably wrong (at least in the long term). And the corollary to this: if you get caught lying publicly, people won't soon forget.

I bring this up only as to reiterate what we've discussed here before. One of the first rules of blogging (and, specifically, milblogging) is to do so with complete integrity. Milblogs have the potential for tremendous impact on public opinion - as long as they are viewed as credible, trustworthy, sources. One foul move and that credibility is destroyed. Unfortunately, I expect that credibility is not just destroyed for that single source. It is likely that other milblogs will be seen with similar skepticism.

A useful defensive blogging tool

The Air Force recently released a flow chart describing how to assess blogs that have posted something about the USAF or a subordinate organization ... and help people decide how to respond. The flow chart is quite colorful and written in simple and clear language. It seems to be a pretty useful tool for folks to use. I believe the intent of this flow chart is primarily for organizations to use, but it could be extremely useful for individual Airmen (or as far as this bog is concerned, Soldiers). I won't comment more on the document itself: there are plenty of posts in the blogosphere already discussing its merits and potential problems. A couple of them worth looking at are:

• Global Nerdy
• Web Ink Now one of the comments on this post from Matt Scherer reads: "The problem with the Air Force is that while they have an ongoing social media strategy, they don't have the authorization to get fulltime access to Twitter and other blogs. Their communication types don't want to allow them outside the firewall. A few proactive PA types are now getting a laptop that allows them to see what the world is blogging about, but until this happens, the Air Force is woefully way behind." This is also a problem for the Army and one that needs to be addressed - we need to know what's being written, so we can know what to (or not to) respond to. It's not ever good to be the "last to know"

I do want to highlight the five considerations:

• Transparency - tell folks who you are
• Sourcing - write based on your experience or observations; else clearly cite your sources
• Timeliness - too slow on the draw and your comments will be missed
• Tone - got to remain professional
• Influence - spend your time on "high payoff targets"

I think these are right on the mark ... they match up with guidance issued by LTG Caldwell to his command as well as with the fundamentals of information outlined in public affairs doctrine and link well with strategic communication guidance. All in all, I think this flow chart will serve to be a very useful resource for organizations and individuals as we all find ways to more effectively use new media to engage the public we sworn to protect.

Toward a new Army blogging policy ...

When determining how best to prepare Soldiers for “aggressive” blogging, my starting point is the military’s public affairs guidance in JP 3-61. This publication outlines the fundamentals of information which are: tell the truth, provide timely information, practice security at the source, provide consistent information at all levels, and tell the DOD story (p1-5,1-6). Let’s investigate how each of these can be applied to a Soldier when in the blogosphere.

• Tell the truth – well, that can’t be said much more clearly. With integrity as one of our core values and the importance of honesty in all we do, this fundamental of information is already a fundamental of soldiering. Interestingly, the authors of a study on credibility state that “people have a general distrust of public relations professionals … individuals ‘from the field’ are perceived as having a higher degree of competence and are viewed as less likely to deceive” (p13). This finding certainly suggests the value of information directly from Soldiers, and blogs are a great way to transmit that information.


• Provide timely information – this is where blogs offer a key advantage over other forms of traditional PA. As the authors of “Engaging the Blogosphere: A Joint Public Affairs Best Practice” (from the Joint Public Affairs Support Element (JPASE), an enabling organization of U.S. Joint Forces Command) suggest, blogging “empowers the average person, regardless of their background and qualifications, to rapidly distribute both information and analysis” (emphasis mine). JP 3-61 further discusses the importance of timely information: “The first side that presents the information sets the context and fames the public debate. It is extremely important to get factual, complete, truthful information out first” (p1-4). As long as Soldiers are cleared to discuss the issue/mission/event, blogs are about the quickest way to get information out. And what a better source for that information than a Soldier or Soldiers who were there!


• Practice security at the source – admittedly, this is the single most concerning detail about blogging. Ensuring our Soldiers practice security when blogging requires two things: proper education and trust. Proper education comes in several forms, one of which already exists as a regular training requirement for soldiers. Annually, every Soldier must attend a training session about OPSEC. This training is conducted at the unit level and typically consists of standard training material coupled with pertinent information specific to their unit and/or location. Simply adding some discussion about how the principles of OPSEC apply to all manners of transmitting information (phone calls, e-mail, and blogging) would help ensure Soldiers understand all aspects of OPSEC. Additionally, in accordance with the Army's current blogging policy, before a Soldier is authorized to blog about anything pertaining to the military, they must have a conversation with their commander and their unit security officer. The security officer has an important role to talk in detail with that Soldier about OPSEC as it applies to their blog and the things they should be very careful about when blogging. An article about OPSEC in the discusses some of the security concerns about Soldier blogging.


• Provide consistent information at all levels – like security, this also provides some concern for commanders. Consistency is critical when presenting a story. In fact, inconsistency brings credibility into question. Consistency in this regard does not mean every level must be telling the same story verbatim; rather, each person/level’s story must marry up properly without contradicting each other. For this reason, PAOs often publish “talking points” for Soldiers throughout an organization to use when interacting with the media. As discussed in an earlier post, ensuring Soldiers understand that these talking points apply also when their blogging can help prevent contradictions. This must be done with care because we certainly don’t want to “use” our Soldiers nor do we want that to be the perception. In the case of blogs, I believe “talking points” and “command messages” can be used to help our Soldiers see the bigger picture and better understand how they fit into that picture. This understanding will likely influence their writing and help ensure consistency.


• Tell the DOD story – like “tell the truth,” I can’t say this one much more clearly and blogs are one great way to help accomplish this fundamental. Several commands (i.e. US Army Combined Arms Center and the US Army Corps of Engineers) but most are primarily for internal communication: keeping the command informed, seeking ideas from the organization, and generating discussion from within. Some of the posts are about current events/actions within the command that help keep the country informed. By encouraging Soldiers to blog about their experiences, we can take this one step further by providing more information of interest to (and, arguably, needed by) the public we serve.

I think it is clear that Soldiers in the blogosphere have a very important role to play. In order to ensure they are properly trained and equipped for this mission – just as we must ensure for every mission – well thought out programs and policies will be required. This is where the bulk of my project lies. LTG Caldwell has published a blogging policy for the US Army Combined Arms Center which provides a great starting point for an Army-wide policy.